Vancouver Auto Repair

How Often Should I Change My Brake Fluid – Vancouver Auto Repair Like so many other parts on your vehicle, your brake fluid can be easy to overlook or forget about. If your car slows down or stops whenever you need it to then brake fluid is the last thing you need to worry about. But like every other part, your brake fluid does wear down and loses its effectiveness over time. It’s a good idea to regularly inspect your brake fluid, if nothing else, to be sure it’s clean and filled to the proper level. But how often should you replace your brake fluid? There is no one set answer for everyone. All vehicles are different and everyone’s driving conditions and situations are unique. So, it will depend on your specific situation. But there are some things to look for to help you know when it’s time for a brake fluid flush ... read more

Have you noticed a few strange things happening with your vehicle and suspect the timing belt? There are a few factors to consider and a few others that can let you know when it is time to replace your timing belt. What Is a Timing Belt? The timing belt in your vehicle controls the piston movements and the opening and closing of the valves in time. The majority of car engines run on a four-stroke operation, which involves the piston ascending and lowering, throughout each of the four stages of the cycle: intake, compression, power, and exhaust. This cycle must coincide with the frequency of the exhaust and intake valves, which is determined by the camshaft. The rubber timing belt in your car has teeth on it. It connects the crankshaft and camshaft, and it must be replaced on occasion. How Do You Know When to Replace a Timing Belt? To determine whether you can effectively remove the timing belt cover, consult a repair manual that contains step-by-step repair instructions. Vehicle r ... read more

What Preventative Maintenance Should You Do Yearly? If you could replace your old body parts with new ones before they completely wear out, wouldn’t you do it? Just imagine being able to keep yourself feeling like new just by replacing a part whenever you needed to. We would all live longer lives, that’s for sure. Unfortunately, we can’t replace body parts, as easily as we can replace car parts. The problem is many car owners don’t like to do any service or repairs until something breaks down. On paper, this might make sense. After all, why fix something if it’s not broken? However, when it comes to cars, you can replace certain parts before they break down, which helps prevent other parts from breaking down. It’s called preventative maintenance. Preventative maintenance helps protect your vehicle from greater damage and more expensive repairs because it he ... read more

  Have you ever been driving along and out of nowhere you hit a jarring bump in the road? Then, you look in your rearview mirror and see a giant pothole that somehow you didn’t see a few seconds earlier. Potholes are pretty nasty for drivers. Unfortunately, not all roads are nice and smooth, which means you have to be vigilant when you’re operating your vehicle. Potholes come in a lot of shapes and sizes, and the best thing to do is completely avoid them no matter what they look like. But, in some instances when roads are torn up really bad, you simply can’t avoid them. In that case, you should slow down and drive very cautiously to avoid any major bumps. Why are potholes such a big deal? While it might seem like a little bump here and there isn’t going to ruin your vehicle, the truth is potholes can hurt, especially if you drive over them a lot and at higher speeds. How Potholes Can Hurt Your Vehicle Hitting a pothole with your vehicl ... read more

Should I get My Wheels Aligned or Tires Rotated? When you’re driving around the streets of Vancouver, WA you probably don’t give your tires too much thought. As long as they keep rolling along and keep you on the road, life is good. However, if you start feeling your car shaking or jiggling that usually activates your senses a little. This is especially true if you’ve just gone through a pothole, or maybe bumped up against a curb. If that happens, then getting your tires and wheels checked out as soon as possible is a good idea. Hitting a pothole or curb can throw off your wheel alignment or damage a tire. So, what action should you take to fix the issue?   Tire Rotation Some people might confuse wheel alignmentand tire rotation. But the truth is they are two com ... read more

Time for a Car Battery Replacement – Vancouver Auto Repair Do you know how old your car battery is? Most people don’t give their battery much thought. As long as their vehicle starts right up every time, then why mess with a good thing, right? Car batteries are all different, which means while one can seemingly last forever, another one might go bad in just a couple of years. The good thing is batteries come with warranties so if yours dies before the warranty has expired you should be able to get a free replacement. But there really is no one perfect answer to the question, “how long will my battery last?” However, there are some things to pay attention to that should give you some clues as to whether or not it’s time to replace your battery.  What Causes Batteries to Wear Down? Over time, batteries wear out. It’s just that simple. They do have a lifespan and eventually they have to be replaced. The way you ... read more